Coconut-Curry Chicken and other stuff...

Some of you may be wondering why our blog has been strangely silent on the politics front, especially since the primaries have begun full-force and have been rather exciting and surprising, to say the least. Well, the reason is two-fold: John hasn't had any time to blog his thoughts recently and I'm too self-conscious to publish my thoughts on the primaries since I am fairly new to the love of politics.

It's funny - John will be the first to tell you that I've come a LONG way in my knowledge of the political process, let alone of the people involved since he first met me. Given his natural love and involvement in politics from a very young age, it's a wonder that he even married me, political/historical ignoramus that I was. Case in point, while he was reading 1,500-page biographies of Winston Churchill and Teddy Roosevelt in middle school (for fun), I was more concerned about making the cheer leading squad and which boys liked me. While John could tell you the names of all the senators in each state, I could quote lines from the Breakfast Club. I could really embarrass myself and tell you about the time I reluctantly went with John to see the movie, 13 Days (about JFK and the Cuban missile crisis)...but as I said before, I'm way too self-conscious. And he still married me...

All that to say, just as my sister became an avid Nascar fan after marrying one, I have become an aspiring political nut who enjoys watching Meet the Press and The Chris Matthews Show and enjoys reading The Atlantic, MUCH to John's supreme delight. This year for Christmas, I got John a subscription to The Weekly Standard, and I think I read all or most of it before he did. We scheduled 'date nights' to watch the Iowa Caucus returns as well as the results of the New Hampshire primaries...and I thoroughly enjoyed both (unlike my experience at watching 13 Days...).

So until John has a few minutes to gather his thoughts and blog them, I thought I'd post another recipe...something I am very confident in blogging about! John is at a session meeting tonight, so I thought I'd take advantage of his absence from dinner and cook something that he wouldn't normally eat (at least on purpose). The kids and I gobbled it up, so here it is:

Coconut-Curry Chicken

1 large pkg chicken legs (about 14) - skinned and seasoned with salt, pepper, curry powder, coriander

minced garlic (I used about 6-8 cloves...but I love garlic)

1 chopped onion

2 potatoes (red or russet), chopped

2+ lbs carrots, chopped large

1 cup coconut milk

1 cup chx broth

1 Tbsp curry powder (or 1/2 jar Lee Kum Kee's coconut curry sauce)

1 Tbsp cornstarch

1+ cup frozen peas

In a dutch oven or deep pan, saute onion and garlic in a little oil then add seasoned chicken legs and brown.

Mix cornstarch and curry in coconut milk and broth and then add to chicken. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer (covered).

Meanwhile, chop carrots and potatoes and add to pan. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, or until carrots are tender.

Add frozen peas and heat through.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with cous cous or rice. Mmmmmmmmm.

Beef, Barley & Sweet Potato Stew

As I've mentioned before, one thing I love about the winter is cooking and eating soups, chilies and stews. Well, I recently found a new stew recipe that I tried and LOVE. I got it out of a Market Street magazine and made my own adjustments, which are written below:

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2+ lbs. beef stew meat (seasoned liberally with pepper, onion powder and garlic powder)
1 Tbsp flour
2+ cups chopped onions (about 1 large)
1+ cup chopped celery with leaves
4 cups low-sodium beef broth
1 bay leaf
3/4 cup pearled barley
5 cups peeled sweet potato chunks, approx. 1-inch squares
2+cups peeled and chopped carrots, approx. 1-inch rounds
2 cups peeled and chopped parsnips (they look like white carrots) or you could substitute white potatoes if parsnips sound too unusual for you.
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried oregano
2 -14oz. (or 1-28oz) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
2 cups frozen peas

Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large saucepan on med-high heat. Add meat and sprinkle with flour, stirring well to coat. Cook until beef is not longer pink. Stir in onions and celery and saute until onions are soft (about 5-10 minutes). Add beef broth and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for about 1 hour.
Add barley, carrots, parsnips, Worcestershire sauce, and oregano. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Add sweet potatoes, cover and simmer another 30 minutes or until veges are tender.
Stir in tomatoes and peas and heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Nutritional info per serving: 497 cal, 13g fat, 4g saturated fat, 112mb cholesterol, 46g protein, 48g carbs, 10g fiber, 596g sodium.

I don't have a picture to post because we ate it up so quickly! Don't get me wrong, this recipe makes a substantial amount of stew...it's just that the McCracken family cleaned it out in 2 meals! We'll definitely be making it again. Hope you enjoy it yourself!

Turkey Chili

Mmmmm...what sounds more inviting than a nice hot bowl of chili on a cold December day? The only problem is that the high yesterday was nearly 80 degrees. Gotta love Texas. Texas may not be known as the winter wonderland, but Texans can whip up some good chili! This particular chili is yummy and remarkably easy to make, so I thought I'd share the recipe:

In an 8qt. stock pot, sauté 1 chopped onion (and 1 chopped red pepper, if you like) in a little olive oil on med-high heat.
Add 1+ lbs. ground turkey breast and brown on high heat. Season with salt and pepper.
Once the turkey is browned, reduce heat and add 3 Tbsp. chili powder and 1 Tbsp. cumin.
Stir until evenly covered and fragrant.
Here comes the easy part...
Add 4-16oz. (or 2-32 oz.) cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes (I use either Muir Glen or Hunt's brand).
Add 1-16oz. can kidney beans and 1-16oz. can black beans.
Add 1 small can of tomato soup (or if you're a purist, add 1/2 a can of tomato paste reconstituted in chicken broth. You'll have to add salt and sugar to taste).
Add 1+ cup frozen corn (I use whole kernel corn) and heat through.

Voila! Serve with cornbread or tortilla chips.

We had the annual staff/officer Christmas party at our house last night (31 adults, I think), so I made 3 batches of chili while everyone else brought appetizers or desserts. The "hardest" part in this recipe is browning the meat and seasoning it. After that, you merely open cans and dump them in (note all the empty cans to the left and in the picture below).


"Hooray for chili!"